Left-right flavor to UA lineup

FAYETTEVILLE — University of Arkansas baseball Coach Dave Van Horn used a similar batting order and lineup for most of its scrimmages between Jan. 27 and Sunday, lending a strong indication of what that will look like for Friday night’s season opener against Texas at the College Baseball Showdown in Arlington, Texas.

In order, the Razorbacks’ lineup of projected position starters was: Center fielder Tavian Josenberger, second baseman Peyton Stovall, third baseman Caleb Cali, first baseman Brady Slavens, left fielder Jared Wegner, right fielder Jace Bohrofen and catcher Hudson Polk.

Shortstop John Bolton batted eighth and ninth in the order during scrimmages. Kendall Diggs, who is expected to start as the designated hitter, did not hit in the same lineup during scrimmages to allow him to play in the field.

Josenberger, who transferred from Kansas, is a switch hitter who is prone to working lengthy at-bats. The next six hitters during the preseason were staggered between right- and lefthanders.

“Something that’s unique about our lineup is we’re able to go left-right, leftright, and we alternate that,” said Wegner, a right-handed hitter who transferred from Creighton. “The left-handed hitters seem to be doing a really good job. They’re more likely to get a lot of sliders, but they seem to be able to handle it.

“I think we’re good when the pitchers are throwing from either side.”

Diggs at DH

Sophomore Kendall Diggs is expected to be the designated hitter this weekend at the College Baseball Showdown.

Diggs batted .197 and walked 16 times in 78 plate appearances last season. He finished with 3 home runs and 14 RBI, and had one of the year’s biggest highlights with a 3-run, pinch-hit home run in the bottom of the ninth inning to beat Ole Miss 6-3 on April 30.

Diggs was one of the team’s most consistent hitters in the preseason. He was hitless in his first 7 atbats, but was 9 for 17 with 2 walks, 3 runs and 6 RBI in the final 5 open scrimmages. He had multiple hits in four consecutive scrimmages while batting leadoff for the lineup opposite the projected position starters.

“He stays on lefties pretty good and when he’s seeing it, it doesn’t matter if they’re right- or left-handed,” Arkansas Coach Dave Van Horn said.

Diggs was in a competition at third base to begin the preseason but played mostly in right field during scrimmages. He did not play in the field and did not run the bases during the final two scrimmages with what was described as a leg contusion that is not expected to be serious.

Jayson Jones, a freshman infielder, missed most of the final two scrimmages with a similar injury to Diggs. Van Horn was not asked directly about Jones and did not provide an update on him Wednesday.

“Injuries are a part of playing,” Van Horn said. “That’s why you have to have depth and you have to have a secondary plan. I’d say for the most part we’re pretty healthy.”

Left side of infield

Transfers Caleb Cali and John Bolton look set to man the left side of the infield at third base and shortstop with big shoes to fill following the losses of Cayden Wallace and Jalen Battles.

Cali, a 6-3, 230-pound junior from Monteverde, Fla., via the College of Central Florida, has been a regular batting third and playing third base during preseason practice, with a few tape-measure home runs to his credit.

Bolton, a 5-10, 180-pounder graduate transfer from Memphis via Austin Peay, is set to hit lower in the order as Battles did before him.

“Caleb’s a very confident hitter,” Coach Dave Van Horn said. “He’s a corner guy, so that means first or third. We had a need for him to play third and that’s what he wanted to play coming in here.”

Projecting whether a junior college hitter will produce in the SEC can be tricky.

“Is that going to work at this level?” Van Horn said the Arkansas coaches asked themselves after scouting the JUCO first-team All-American. “He’s proved that he can hit our pitching, so he should be able to hit just about anybody out there. Hopefully he can just relax and stay within and do what he can do.”